Hope Begins Here

Hope for today!

Today is a good day! Its the day hope broke free from its last restraint!

The day we celebrate All that was lost is now redeemed

Life overcame death!

Death defeated! Sin defeated!

The final battle has delivered its Champion! Jesus! The lover of our soul!

Let me talk about the loss first!

The loss!

In the beginning man was whole! God created Him in His image and likeness, man was in perfect communion with God. No fear, no confusion, no loss. All things were provided! God took care of Adam Adam took care of the Garden.

But all of this was stripped away one day because Adam and Eve thought they knew better than God and decided to eat of the fruit of the knowledge of Good and Evil.

Genesis 3:1–7 NKJV

Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

Phase 1 - Loss of Relationship with God and others. pain, fear, shame, guilt and knowledge of good and evil

The loss started because of a lie that seemed like truth.

The eating of the knowledge of good and evil robbed man of his relationship with God and with others.

This was such a deep wound, yet man didn’t begin to understand how deep of a would this was. Death is what it was.

Darkness now reigned in mans world. Confusion, hatred and pain.

Evil consumed the earth.

Phase 2 - Man tries to save Himself and fails. Man comforts himself with being good or being evil

We were not made for this kind of life. We were made for Life!

But who would stop this craziness? who could stop evil and death and sin from completely destroying mankind?

Man didn’t understand what was happening and didn’t know what to do about it.

God sent the flood saving only Noah and His family.

Lets start fresh! But soon evil had taken over again, and God gave mankind different tongues to make them spread and populate the earth.

Phase 3- God intervenes and makes a covenant with Man. (Abraham)

God makes promises to Abraham and Abraham believes the promises and therefore He is rescued. His life was different than all other men living in those days, because He believed God!

God is now going to use the Hebrew nation to show His mercy and His work of redemption

Phase 4- God rescues His people (the seed of Abraham) from 400 years of slavery in Egypt.

God with might and power delivers the Hebrews from Egypt using a man called Moses. At this point God has made promises to this nation to show them that He was able to save and rescue them. They rejected Him and wondered 40 years in the desert. At this time God gives them the 10 commandments and the law!

Now it becomes very clear what is good and what is evil.

Phase 5 - God full fills His promises and Gives His people the promised Land.

Knowing what is good, they don’t do it. They pervert the law and its promises and eventually get kicked out of their promised land.

Phase 6 - The Hebrews now cast out of their land and distant from God.

During this phase the Hebrews decide to follow the Law and the prophets to get their land back. There is a period of 400 years of silence and know Jesus Comes!

Phase 7 - Jesus comes to us.

Jesus comes in humility born in a manger.

Jesus fulfills the promise of God to Man that He would one day restore us to Him. And that all the work of the devil and all the pain and sorrow He would wash away!

Jesus paid the price, He took our place. Sin seemed to have won. His own rejected Him. Mocked and crucified naked on a cross He took all our shame and guilt. All of our old and corrupt man and gave us life!

The power of this day is that Jesus took upon himself the battle, the fight we couldn’t win and won it for us! He broke the chains of bondage and rescued our souls from utter darkness. forgave us all our sins and has brought us back into our fathers house. We now can have eternal life and love today and forevermore.

Matthew 28

Matthew 28:1–8 NKJV

Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men. But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.” So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.

John 3:15–16 AMP

In order that everyone who believes in Him [who cleaves to Him, trusts Him, and relies on Him] may not perish, but have eternal life and [actually] live forever! For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.